Fatal floods in Serbia and Bosnia force tens of thousands to flee their homes

Record flooding in the Balkans has left least 20 people dead in Serbia and Bosnia and is forcing tens of thousands to flee their homes.

Meteorologists say the flooding is the worst since records began 120 years ago and is due to three months’ worth of rain falling on the region in three days. Goran Mihajlovic from Serbia’s Weather Centre said such rainfall happens once in 100 years.

In the eastern Bosnian town of Bijeljina, some 10,000 people were being evacuated on Saturday after the rain-swollen river Sava surged through flood defences.